


Ianto Knows All

by Nightingale



Category: Torchwood
Genre: Angst, Character Study, Drama, Episode Tag, Episode: s02e11 Adrift, Established Relationship, F/M, Flat Holm, Gen, M/M, Spoilers, seasom 1&2 spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-03-03
Updated: 2012-03-03
Packaged: 2017-11-01 01:34:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/350523
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nightingale/pseuds/Nightingale
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ianto knows everything…so how exactly did he find out about Flat Holm?<br/>Spoilers: everything up and including Adrift<br/>Beta: Hiril Moon</p>
            </blockquote>





	Ianto Knows All

**Author's Note:**

> first of this is the first time I'm writing for this fandom so I'm a little nervous…  
> Secondly I normally don't write angst pieces but for the first time I wrote a semi-angst piece-I couldn't really avoid it but I hope it's not too angsty…

** Ianto Knows All **

The first time Ianto had heard about Flat Holm – well, he didn't really hear per se…more like noticed. It was in the early months, when he had just begun to organize the massive paperwork which the team had deemed `not so important so I'm not going to do it` (Owen) or `I'll do it tomorrow` (Jack) – which didn't really help, since the 'not so important paperwork' was, well, practically everything…

Anyway…it was one of Captain Harkness's papers that Ianto had found. It was an account for something called Flat Holm. That in itself wasn't very interesting or eye-catching, but when he started to notice the same form for an unknown place called Flat Holm every single month which seemed to be dealt with only by Captain Harkness – that caught his attention. So after a quick Google search, Ianto found out that Flat Holm was some deserted island. Apparently there was some facility on the island – one that apparently Captain Harkness was keeping running for some reason…

Under normal circumstances, Ianto would be heading straight to his boss and trying to question his findings – but than he had Lisa to think of, and the last thing he wanted was to draw more unwanted attention than he already had, so he filed the information in the back of his head with all the rest of the things he picked up in the archives (like the picture of Captain Harkness looking the same as he did today 50 years ago…) under "Information That Would Draw Unwanted Attention". Besides, he needed to start to think where Lisa and himself would go once Dr Tanizaki cured her… Lisa had always said she would love to live someplace warmer – maybe they'd go to some tropical island…

The next day he bought every traveling book he could find – Dr Tanizaki was coming!

He never got the chance to read or even open any of the books he’d bought – they stayed in a box in the small closet with the rest of Lisa's things. Not to be touched, forgotten – just like Flat Holm …

\-----

The second time Ianto had thought about Flat Holm was when Jack and Tosh had gone back in time and he was searching in the archives for anything that would bring them back. He didn't find anything – nothing useful that is… Until he remembered that file in the back of his mind – the one he had forgotten after Lisa…But it was back now, and he remembered the secret facility on Flat Holm. He didn't know why Jack kept it a secret – perhaps there were some dangerous (that is, more dangerous) weapons that couldn't be kept in the Hub? But maybe something in there could help? He was planning to tell Owen about his plan (Gwen was out) when the idiot decided to open the rift…and than all hell broke loose and Flat Holm returned to that file, not to be touched for a while…     

\-----

The third time he remembered about Flat Holm was when a woman called on Jack's phone in his office. It was late at night and no one was in the Hub – ever since Jack had left  (…abandoned…) them, the Hub was almost empty every night – except for Ianto, who had almost lived there every since Jack…

The office had rarely been touched or entered unless the phone rang. Usually either Gwen or he answered the phone. On a rare occasion Owen had answered but that was only a one time thing…but now he was alone and the phone was ringing…

It was a woman named Alice. She was looking for Jack – apparently he hadn't visit Flat Holm like he did every month and she was worried…That was the first time he decided to get to the root of what Flat Holm was. He told Alice that Jack was away for a while  (…forever…?) and that he had left him in charge in the meantime – he didn't know why he chose this blunt lie (that he was in charge, not that Jack was gone…) but he did it and the next morning he came to the place known as Flat Holm. According to Alice and some further digging, Ianto found out that Flat Holm was a hospital which Jack had formed since he took charge of  Torchwood 3\. Apparently the Rift didn't only bring things but also took people from the city and, worse of all, brought then back but not well – at least that was what Jack had written on one form. He didn't really understand what he meant when he wrote `not well` though…

It was quite easy to take a day off – both Gwen and Tosh has been asking him to take some time off, worrying he was working too much, far too much since Jack…So it was no problem.

He arrived at Flat Holm around noon. Alice had been waiting for him as he stepped out of the boat. She gave him the tour and introduced him to some of the patients – those that were in clear state, that is… He now understood what Jack had written. "Not well" was – well, words couldn't describe "not well". 

After leaving (with a promise to come back and bring some of his coffee – apparently Jack had mentioned his ability to Alice…), he crawled in his bed and cried himself to sleep…

\-----

The fourth time Ianto has heard about Flat Holm was from Jack. It was shortly after they had sent Tommy back to his time and the Rift had been quiet for a few days. Jack had been gone the entire afternoon, only to come back looking exhausted. It wasn't the first time he'd done that now that Ianto recalled it – he had done that before: be gone once a month when the Rift was being quiet. Before, he hadn’t really understood why he came back looking so… But now it all clicked in his mind: Flat Holm. 

Unlike before, when Jack would shut himself in his office and wouldn't come out until the next day or if the Rift was acting up, now he looked at Ianto. He didn't go to the office as he usually did – he came right to him, not worrying what everyone would think (not that he needed to – Gwen took the rest of the day off to spend with Rhys; Owen and Tosh, claiming there was nothing to do, also went – since apparently paperwork was nothing…) and said, "You know". He didn't try to deny it – what was the point? Instead he embraced Jack, or was it Jack who embraced him first? They spent the rest of the day together in bed holding each other…  

\-----

The fifth time, he gave Gwen (not directly) the GPS…She had to know – they all did. Jack didn't deserve to be thought of as someone heartless… It was the right thing to do – even if it would hurt Jack, it was just one of those things that had to be done. Some burdens should be shared – sometimes two is just not enough…

That night when Jack comes back to him, there is no yelling or angry words – there aren’t any words, as a matter of a fact. He just holds Jack close to him until both of them fall asleep.

It's not okay. It will never be – but for now they can make it a little bit better holding each other.


End file.
